Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII Has A Costume Based On Final Fantasy VI

So we know one thing—Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII will have costumes, and plenty of them. From bunny suits to Dragoon costumes, Lightning will be sporting over 80 different costumes in the upcoming game. Additionally, key Square Enix designers talked costumes in a recent interview with Dengeki.

The designers who participated in the interview with Dengeki are character designer Toshiyuki Itahana, art director Isamu Kamikokuryo, and lead art designer Toshitaka Matsuda. Dengeki asks the designers to share a little about the work they’ve done for Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII.

“I was in charge of about two costumes. The Nocturne and one more costume we’ve yet to announce,” shares Kamikokuryo. “I often work on symbolic things, and at least one illustration that has the characteristic of the town, but I’m not used to drawing characters… so if Itahana draws ten characters, then I would draw maybe one, at that rate [laughs].”

“There’s definitely a difference in expertise,” adds Itahana. “On the other hand, if I had to draw backgrounds, it’d take me much longer just for one drawing.”

While on the subject of designs, Dengeki asks if they could share some of the ideas that went into the costume design concept.

“For the Nocturne [costume], they wanted a gothic-style theme as its image,” says Kamikokuryo. “Since we only had rough images, I began drawing it while thinking that it’d be nice to have something with a simple design and collar that stood out from left to right. While I didn’t have much trouble thinking about it, the progress took a little longer. In my head, I can think up of buildings and scenery in 3D, but when it comes to characters, I can’t exactly do the same.”

Next up, Dengeki asks Matsuda to share his thoughts on designing the Dragoon outfit, which is said to symbolize Final Fantasy, as a whole.

“I actually wanted her to also wear a helmet, but couldn’t due [do it] to time conflicts, and Toriyama also asked us to make at least 80 different costumes,” shares Matsuda with a laugh. “In this game, we want to show off Lightning’s entire figure, so in a way, we thought that it’d be better to not hide her face, and decided to not include a helmet. For this reason, I made the purple collar near her face, as a way to replicate the Dragoon’s image.”

Finally, Dengeki asks them if Lightning’s Heartstealer costume was made to closely resemble Locke from Final Fantasy VI.

“That’s right. There were talks about wanting to make costumes that represents the Final Fantasy series as an image, so I made it while using the colors of Yoshitaka Amano’s drawing as a reference,” shares Itahana.

“However, Mr. Amano’s design patterns are very elaborate, so if the design didn’t go well, there was a chance that it wouldn’t be the same in the game, so I remember working on it thoroughly at some parts. Also, at the time of production, there weren’t many costumes with a boyish look, so I thought that it’d be nice to try it out.”

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII is slated for release in February 2014 in North America and Europe for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.